Firearm with compass in stock



May 20, 1952 E. F. WHITE ETAL 2,597,212

FIREARM WITH COMPASS IN STOCK Filed June l0, 1948 wlIll//lI/llN-V/ll/ Patented May 20, 1952 FIREARM WITH COMPASS 1N STOCK Ezekiel Field White, West Hartford, Conn., and Michael J. La Viano, Westwood, N. J.

Application June 10, 1948, Serial No. 32,068

l. This invention relates to direction finders, and more'particularly to a direction nder associated with a gun or similar device used in outdoor sportsY and having substantial length, whereby, when pointed in a given direction, this direction may readily be indicated. g

It is a common experience for hunters to become lost when hunting in wooded areas where a landmark may not be kept in view. For example, a hunter often leaves his car or other conveyance at some point along a road where he begins to hunt. After the lapse of some time, he suddenly realizes that he not only does not know the general direction in which he is going, but has little or no idea as to the direction to take to return to the point from which he started.

In such a situation, a hunter sometimes employs a compass, but this is unsatisfactory in that the metal of his gun affects the direction in which the needle points unless he sets the gun down and moves some distance away from it to take a compass reading. I-Ie then may get a general idea of which direction is north, for example, but it is diflicult to keep this direction in mind while he returns to pick up his gun and start upon his return trip. He has more or less lost his bearings upon the return to his gun. In addition, even if he could keep in mind the points of the compass, he would still have little idea as to the direction which should be taken in order to retrace his steps.

I In the present invention, we have found that a magnetic needle may be mounted on a gun, for example, particularly on the stock thereof, and preferably at as great a distance as possible from the metallic parts of the gun, and, by using the gun itself with which to point or to indicate a given direction, a hunter may readily determine the direction he is going with reference to a given starting point or thedirection which should be taken to return to this point. While the metal of the gun will ailect the reading of the needle, this eiect will always be the same. and, as in the use of the device reliance is not placed upon the points of the compass, the deflection of the needle by the gun will cancel out, so to speak, and not result in error.

One object of the present invention is to provide a direction nder, such that a hunter, for example, may readily determine the direction in which he is proceeding with reference to a given object, and may also determine the direction which should be taken to return to this landmark.

A further object of the invention is to provide a magnetic needle upon a gun, whereby a user of 2 Claims. (VCI. 42-71) the gun may, by using the latter as a pointer. readily determine the direction in which he is proceeding with reference to a given landmark.`

A still further object of the invention is to provide a magnetic needle upon a gun in such a position that it may be readily seen by the operator, and provide adjacent the needle a rotatable mark or indicator to indicate the direction in which the needle points when the gun is pointed toward a given object or landmark.

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a portion of a gun having our invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged top plan view of a portion of the gun showing our invention; and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

To illustrate a preferred embodiment of our invention, we have shown in Fig. l of the drawings a gun comprising a barrel portion I0 and a stock Il. Adjacent the rear end of the stock, a magnetic needle enclosed in a suitable case is mounted at the upper side of the stock of the gun, as shown at I3.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 3, a recess or cavity I4 is bored into the gun stock, and, in this cavity, is positioned a cup-shaped housing or shell I5 secured in place by screws or like fastening members I6. It is noted that the interior of the cup member l5 is slightly larger adjacent the bottom thereof, and that this enlarged portion joins the upper portion by a beveled shoulder ll, to which reference will be made hereinafter.

A magnetic needle 20 is mounted upon a spindle or pivot 2l, this spindle being xed in a cupshaped needle case 22, which member has a cylindrical body portion and a laterally extending flange 23 adjacent its upper end.

Adjacent its lower end, the member 22 is provided with an annular recess 2t in its side wall. and, in this recess, is placed a resilient split ring 25 which has a slight, tendency to expand. As shown, the cup-shaped member 22 may be inserted in the member I5 and the spring 25 compressed into the recess 24 to permit the member 22 to be received in the member l5. When it has been inserted to the position shown, and the lower surface of the flange 23 rests upon the upper edge of the cup-shaped member l5, the split ring 25 will lie opposite the annular beveled shoulder l1, so that it will expand outwardly and releasably hold the member 22 in place.

3 This latter member may be detached by inserting a thin blade, such as a knife blade, below the flange 23 and prying upwardly, so as to overcome the tension of the split ring 25 and force it into the recess 24 and thus permit the withdrawal of the member 22.

The flange portion 23 of the member 22 is slightly beveled at its upper edge, and this beveled portion provided with serrations or teeth 26, which may be engaged by the nger or fingernail of the user, so that the member 22 may be rotated with respect to the member I5, it being understood that the member 22 is rotatably mounted with respect to the member I5 which is xed to the stock by the screws I5.

The needle 20 may have one end, its north end, for example, painted or colored white, as Shown at 21, and the cavity within which the needle lies may be closed by a transparent cover or crystal 28. As shown, this cover 28 rests in an annular seat 29 formed in the upper portion of the member 22, and the upper portion of this member may be peened over slightly, as shown at 30, to hold the cover in place.

An indicator of some kind may be placed on some part of the member 22, so that it ma-y be brought into registration with one end of the needle 20. ably white, may be provided on the transparent cover 28. This mark may be made in any suit.- able way, but we have found it satisfactory to provide a recess in the under surface of the plate and a small amount of white paint in this recess. It will be seen, therefore, that, by rotating the mounting member or the needle case 22, the indicator 3i may always be brought into registration with one end of the needle, as shown in Fig. 2, for example, regardless of the direction in which the needle points.

In the use of the device, if a hunter is preparing to hunt in a strange country, he may wish to return to his car or some other place of beginning which he may use as a landmark. He would then, on leaving the car or other landmark. walk in the general direction win which he wished to hunt. from this point, but in sight of the point, he would turn and point the ,gun at the car or other landmark. When the needle had adjusted itself, he would then, by means of `the serrations 26 turn' the case 2,2 until the point Y3l registered with the ,north end 2-'1 of the magnetic needle. He would jknow then that, thereafter, when the gun was pointed in the proper direction to bring .indicator 34| in registration with the same end of the needle, the gun was pointing `in .the samedrection.

The hunter would .then proceed checking his direction occasionally by pointing his gun and turning lit until it showed that he was proceeding in a direction 180 from that to which the deviceL was originally set. This would mean that he was walking directly away from his car or other point of beginning.

When Vhehad nished his hunting and wished toreturn, .he would then point his gun vuntil ythe indicating mark `3l registered with the white end V21 of the needle, Yand he would know that he was then proceeding in the general direction ofhis car.

.The north Aend of .the needle .and the indicator 3-I may desirably be of luminous material, so that they .may be seen readily in the dark.

.As is well known, a magnetic needle points toward the Ymagnetic ,pole rather than toward For this purpose, a mark 3l, prefer- When he was some distance the earths pole, and therefore never points toward the true north, but is always subject to a magnetic declination depending upon geographic location of the point at which the reading is taken. Any correction which must be made for this reason to nd the true north in the use of a magnetic needle or compass is further complicated where the reading of the needle is affected by surrounding objects, as would be the case where the needle is mounted on a gun, for example.

However, it will be seen that in the present instance no correction is necessary either on account of the magnetic declination or on account Of the fact that the direction of the needle might be affected by the barrel or other metallic parts of the gun. The user of the present device is not interested 'in the true north and south direction, but only in the reading of the needle when the gun is pointed toward the landmark or other place of beginnng- AS the deflection of the needle, both on account of the position 0f the magnetic pole and also because of the eiect of the metal of the gun, will be the same when the hunter takes his first reading adjacent the place of beginning as it is when he is at the end of his journey .and desires to begin his return, the deflection will ,cancel out, and it is only necessary to so point the gun that the marker or indicator registers with the north end of the needle regardless of the deection rfrom the true north. The points of the compass are of no significance in the use of the device.

The Aflange 23 upon the case 22 fits tightly upon the upper edge of the shell I4, ,so as lt0 make ,a relatively tight joint between vthese parts, the flange being urged 111110 contact with the shell by the engagement of the spring ring 25 with the beveled shoulder I1.. With this arrangement the device is dust and water resistant, while at the same time readily rotatable by eengagerrient of the knurled or serrated upper surface of the flange by the fingers of the operator. Furthermore, the case 22 may be readily removed by the insertion of a knife blade between the lower surface of the flange -23 and the upper edge of the shell I4.. It may also be noted that, as the ,shell I4 Yis disposed in a recess or cavity in ,the Astock of the gun, the Case is substantially nush with the surface of the gun, and, as the serrated portion 26 of the flange is beveled outwardly `and downwardly, there ywill be little danger of the nance being engaged accidentally by the neer and the setting changed.

While -wehave shownand desnatada preferred embodiment of our invention. it will be nnderf stoodthat itis not to be limited tv all'of the de.- tals shown, but is `capable `of modication and variation V,within the .spirit of the A invention and within 4the scope of the claims.

Whatwe claim is:

-.1. A-.direction finder comprising `a nrearm hav,- ing .a stock .provided with a recess :in its upper surf-ace, a .cupshaped shell bottoming in said recess ;-andsecured therein, acase rotatably mount? ed in said shell, a vmagnetic needle .piyotally mounted in the case, and an indicator fixed upon the case -whereby it may lbe brought into registration with the -needle 'by -rotation of the case,

said case having a laterally :projecting flangeA overlying fthe upper edge of the shell, the ,lateral edge of said flange being fiiush with the .Outer periphery of the upper'edeefof the-shell andsaid flange 'being -roughened upon its Iuppersufrace.

Aldirecticn-nder ccmprisinganrearmfhcring a stock provided with a recess in its upper surface, a cup-shaped shell bottoming in said recess, securing means extending through the bottom of the shell into the stock to secure the shell in place, a case rotatably mounted in said shell, a magnetic needle pivotally mounted in the case, and an indicator xed upon the case whereby it may be brought into registration with the needle aby rotation of the case, means detachably securing the case in the shell, said means comprising a spring ring carried by the case, said shell having a beveled inwardly facing shoulder engaged by the ring, said case having an annular recess in its side wall in which said ring is mounted, said recess being of suficient depth to receive said ring and permit removal of the case from the shell, said case having a flange projecting over the upper edge of said shell, said flange having its outer periphery ilush with the outer surface of the Wall of the shell and said flange being roughened upon its upper surface.

EZEKIEL FIELD WHITE.

MICHAEL J. LA VIANO.

6 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHER REFERENCES The Shcoters Bible, Catalog published 1940 by Stoeger Arms Corporation, New York, N. Y. (only page 171 relied upon). (Copy in Div. 70.) 

